WW2 Band of Brothers hero Dick Winters was born 100 years ago, Jan. 21

Major Dick Winters and the actor who portrayed him in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers, Damian Lewis.
http://www.imgrum.org/media/1015917285724521642_1514714736 

I normally write about the World War 2 fallen who did not survive the war. Today I make an exception because Major Dick Winters was born 100 years ago on January 21, 1918.

Major Winters story first reach prominence with the publication of Stephen Ambrose's Band of Brothers in 1992. His renown multiplied when his story was the focus of the HBO miniseries of the same name in 2001.

This is what Major Winters had to say about the men who did not come home:

"And not one day goes by that I don't think of the men who never had the opportunity to enjoy a world of peace. Their collective legacy is best summarized in Henry W. Longfellow's 'A Psalm of Life.' In describing songs of hope and courage, Longfellow writes:

Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sand of time.

"I wish to convey a final thought -- and I hope that it doesn't sound out of place -- but I would like to share something as I look back on the war. War brings out the worst and the best in people. Wars do not make men great, but they bring out the greatness in good men. War is romantic only to those who are far away from the sounds and turmoil of battle. For those of us who served in Easy Company and for those who served their country in other theaters, we came back as better men and women as a result of being in combat and most would do it again if called upon. But each of us hoped that if we had learned anything from the experience, it's that war is unreal and we earnestly hoped that it would never happen again."

-- Beyond Band of Brothers: The War Memoirs of Major Dick Winters by Dick Winters, pg. 291-292.
Also available on Kindle or Audiobooks.

Major Winters passed away on January 2, 2011.

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